Thursday, March 22, 2012

Finally, the Ol' Dirty Bastard Biopic We've All Been Waiting For

Russell Tyrone Jones was a man who went by many names: Dirt Dog, Dirt McGirt, Ason Unique, Osirus, Big Baby Jesus, Joe Bananas, Peanut the Kidnapper, Freeloading Rusty, Knifey McStab, Little Billy Clinton or most prominently, Ol' Dirty Bastard. And, repairing a cultural injustice, at least one part of his life story is coming to the big screen. Oh, and the guy who played Omar on The Wire is playing him. BOOM FILM HISTORY MADE:

EW has learned exclusively that [Michael K.] Williams, 45, will star in an upcoming film about the legendary Wu-Tang Clan rapper and all-around troubled soul Russell Jones, a.k.a. Ol’ Dirty Bastard, whose impressive mic skills and outrageous showmanship were eclipsed by his erratic offstage behavior, assorted arrests, and an early death.

Joaquín Baca-Asay, the cinematographer on We Own the Night, Roger Dodger and Jay-Z’s video for 99 Problems, is also joining the project, making his feature directorial debut.

The movie is based on the final years of ODB’s life — a true story that is nonetheless stranger than fiction.

Titled Dirty White Boy, the film focuses on the offbeat friendship between the Wu-Tang Clan co-founder and Jarred Weisfeld, a 22-year-old VH1 production assistant who through a lot of hustle (and the occasional lie) talked his way into becoming the rapper’s manager when Jones was serving a three-year stint in prison in the early 2000s.